About Our Staff  

Rev. Dr. John E. Morgan

Senior Pastor

 John Morgan has been Senior Pastor of First Presbyterian Church of York since March of 1999.  He is a graduate of Grove City College of Pennsylvania (BA), Princeton Theological Seminary (M.Div.) and McCormick Theological Seminary (D. Min. Preaching).  Since his ordination in 1985 he has served churches in New Jersey and Minnesota.

The title of John’s Doctoral Thesis is: “Proclamation by Invitation: Inviting Postmodern Hearers to Transformation.”  An important part of his preaching ministry is the “roundtable pulpit.”  Several times a year John meets with a small group of members from the congregation to engage the Word of God and one another.  He believes that when members of the congregation participate in the formation of sermons it enables a community to hear preaching in a new and effective way.

 John’s family brings him great joy!  His wife Ellen enjoys being involved in a variety of ways in the church.  She is an  advocate for the important role of children in the church.  She loves cooking, eating good food, and believes there is  something about sharing food which enables us to share each other’s lives.  Ellen has a bachelor’s degree in science from  Grove City College and has found work in the technical sales field very rewarding.  Their oldest daughter, Erica, is in  Washington D.C.  Grace, who is three years younger,is attending Dickinson College and loves volleyball, and playing her cello.

Rev. Allison J. Beaulieu  -  Associate Pastor

Allison grew up in York and was baptized and confirmed here at First Presbyterian Church.  She has her BA from Barnard College of Columbia University and her M. Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary. She served as Interim Associate Pastor for Youth and Young Adults at Glenshaw Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh while her husband, Keith Beaulieu was in residency at The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.  In 2009, Keith and Allison moved to Lancaster for Keith to join the Pulmonary Associates of Lancaster. Keith and Allison have two sons, Gus, age 2 1/2 and Oscar, who just had his first birthday. Allison will be serving full time in this position as Temporary Supply as we move forward in the process to call an installed Associate Pastor.

 Roger Landis – Office/Business Manager

Roger began a new career as the Office/Business Manager for FPC in 2003 when Pat Shatto and Erma Walsh retired.  At the end of 2003, he officially retired from a 33-year career as research chemist/scientist for Armstrong.  Roger was raised in the West York area and was a life-long member of Calvary United Presbyterian Church.  He began singing with the FPC choir in 1992, and finally joined FPC upon the merger of the two congregations in 1996.  Roger has always felt a calling to serve the Lord in some capacity but the “chemistry” was never right.  His involvement in church finance began in 1972 at Calvary and with each new opportunity this grew to become one of his gifts in service to Christ.  While he is still learning how best to merge two job functions into one manageable task, he finds that the time has zipped by and that he is in the most enjoyable work environment he has experienced in years.  Roger praises God for providing him with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

In his spare time, Roger is a sports enthusiast and particularly enjoys watching baseball (the Orioles), football (Penn State), and NASCAR races (Bobby Labonte), much to his wife wife’s chagrin!  Roger and his son, Chris, have been fortunate to attend races in Daytona, Darlington, Dover, and Charlotte.  He and his wife Judy consider Stone Harbor/Avalon as their favorite get-away spot and they enjoy caring for their “grand-dog,” Brady, a spirited black lab mix.  While Roger has a strong traditional worship background, he has really grown to appreciate the contemporary worship style.  His family has always been musically inclined, and it is through music that Roger finds a closeness to and an inner-peace from his Savior.  He also enjoys making  a joyful noise in the choir (and sometimes in harmony) with Judy, and on the Praise Team with his daughter, Jennifer Ryan and son-in-law, Timothy Ryan.  Roger and Judy are also blessed to have both of their mothers (Ethel Landis and Betty Hunsworth) with them as members of FPC.

John Adams – Facility Manager

John Adams is a native of York.  He was baptized in, and attended First Presbyterian Church of York since he was an infant.  He joined the church in his young teenage years and made a personal decision to dedicate his life to Christ in his late teen years.  John as a youth sang in the youth choirs and rang in the bell choir.  Even to this day his love for good music and the pipe organ takes him to Philadelphia, in his spare time, to work on and enjoy the beautiful music of the Wanamaker Organ in the center city Macy's store. John is also very active the Abendmusic Concert Series held at FPC.  On a slightly different note, John was a member of Cub Pack and Troop 1, Boy Scouts of America, located at FPC.

John attended Pennsylvania State University, and acquired training in engineering.  He also attended and graduated from other specialized training in his design field including management and supervision. Prior to being called to the church as the Physical Plant Administrator, John worked in industry for many years doing electrical and mechanical engineering.  His last job included managing a small business, including all phases of the operation.

In more recent years, John has served and continues to serve on the Building and Grounds Committee of the church and plays an active role in the sound and tape ministry.  He enjoys helping with the annual Thanksgiving dinner where the church reaches out to the community and serves over 500 people.

Jim Spark – Director of Music Ministry A lifelong Presbyterian, Jim joined the staff of First Presbyterian in 1995 as Interim Director of Music. Shortly thereafter, he was installed as Associate Director, and in 2004 became the Director of Music Ministries. Born and raised in Canada, he received his formal musical education, majoring in piano, trumpet, and violin, with the Royal Conservatory of Music, University of Toronto. He has been the recipient of numerous scholarships and awards for performance in national and international competition. In addition to extensive church and classical venues, Jim was the director and member of a touring Canadian comedy show band during the mid 70’s. He has also performed at the Oscar Peterson Canadian Open Jazz Festival in Quebec, and numerous other events across Canada and the U.S. Jim currently lives in Jacobus with his wife, Marlene.

Bill Gellman – Directory of the Caring Company  Bill Gellman joined the Caring Company in January 2012. Most recently, Bill served as the executive director of Summerbridge Pittsburgh, an educational non-profit based at Sewickley Academy (Sewickley, PA) and one of twenty-seven sites around the US that comprise the Breakthrough Collaborative. Prior to his time at Summerbridge Pittsburgh, Bill was a science faculty member at the Kinkaid School (Houston, TX) and the Ashevillle School (Asheville, NC). Bill spent two years in Nayarit, Mexico, working on a church construction project, which is where he met his wife, Maria Elena. They have three children. Bill also had the good fortune to spend time in Alaska, working as a fisheries biologist for the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Bill received his bachelor's degree from Penn State University and his master's degree from the University of Montana. He attends Iglesia Cristiana de York and enjoys drawing, playing percussion instruments and trumpet, and avidly watching soccer games.

Wendy Smith – Director of Christian Education

Wendy earned her B.S. in elementary education  from York College in 1976. After graduation she taught in the West York School District for four years. She then had the privilege of remaining home to raise three daughters.  From 1993-2003, she served as the Director of Christian Education at Eastminster Presbyterian Church in York, PA. She is a certified associate Director of Christian Education with the PCUSA.

Kathy Sprenkle – Administrative/Secretary

Kathy Sprenkle joined the staff of FPC in 2003.    Kathy grew up in Pittsburgh and met her husband, Jon, at Penn State.  She worked as an engineer prior to the birth of her children.  She was the director of her church preschool and then moved into church secretary office work as the children got older.  She and Jon have been married since 1983 and live with their three children in West York.

Nancy Wiegmann – Administrative Assistant

Nancy McBain Wiegmann – Originally from South Carolina (thus the accent), Nancy previously worked for the Social Security Administration in Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, and Maryland before retiring several years ago. She has two sons, one in Baltimore and the other, recently married, in Houston, Texas. After moving to York, she wanted to quickly become integrated in the community, so she took a job selling jewelry at the BonTon, volunteered at the Strand-Capital, and now works as receptionist at the First Presbyterian Church.  She joined FPC and was married here in 2011. She enjoys connecting with new people, walking her Border collie, sailing, working in her yard, reading, and traveling.

Bob Sears – Custodial/Maintenance

Bob is a graduate of Shepherd College. He and his wife Kathy will celebrate 30 years of marriage in October, 2010. They have two sons, John who is 25 and works in the Pittsburgh area, and Michael, who is 21 and works in Williamsport. Bob has lived in the York area for 30 years, and has worked in management for Bon-Ton, Lowes, and most recently, Living Word Community Church, where he is a member. He enjoys sports, outdoor activities, hiking, and mission trips to Guatemala to work on church buildings. His ministry passion is working in men’s ministry. He enjoys being around people, getting to know them, and helping them in any way he can.

Deb Gotwalt - Custodian

Deb Gotwalt started her employment at FPC in September of 2002 as part-time, and after a short period moved into a full time custodian position.  She has a son, Steven, and appreciates her mother’s help who care for her son while she is working.  She likes the job shift as it gives her time in the morning with Steven before he goes to school, and she can still tuck him into bed at the end of her day.  She and Steven enjoy reading, playing ball, and “hanging out” on his new swing set.

Deb loves the people at First Presbyterian.  She enjoys cleaning and moving around doing different tasks. She takes pride in keeping FPC pristine and particularly likes a job environment that is so serene and peaceful.